It’s not quite the traditional fairytale. A boy and a girl’s eyes meet across a crowded room… crowded, that is, with TV cameras filming the encounter, along with their interactions with 18 other women prepared to backstab, fight and scheme to win the boy’s affections.

Across the nation, viewers were gripped by the unconventional romance of The Bachelor’s Sam Wood, a Melbourne-based gym owner, and single mum Snezana Markoski from Perth. Their December engagement was announced in an equally modern way: an Instagram snap of the bride-to-be’s enormous (two-carat) sparkler captioned with heart emojis.

While the season three finale aired in September, theirs isn’t quite the whirlwind courtship it might appear. “We started filming nearly a year ago – it was on the third of March, I think,” says Sam. “Snez and I had great conversations when they were changing sets. We had hours to get to know each other on a different level.”

A difficult period followed after the final rose ceremony had been filmed and before it was aired on television, when the pair had to keep what happened a secret, even from their friends and family. They could only meet every two weeks “in these ridiculous hidden locations – Airbnbs, underground car-park car changeovers…” laughs Sam. “I thought it was a bit melodramatic, but then someone would say, ‘See that guy over there? We’re being followed.’ The paparazzi actually are that intense. It was very Jason Bourne!”

Of course, the love of a nation isn’t enough to evade controversy. When Sam’s Facebook account recently featured a smoothie recipe with the comment: “When Snez isn’t in Melbourne with me, I like to make her favourite smoothie to remind me of her. You can call me gay if you want, but I’ll go with cute”, public criticism was immediate. (He was unreachable in a meeting and someone from his office posted it without his approval.) The post, which “used language I wouldn’t use”, was swiftly taken down. Sam acknowledges, “The buck stops with me. I accept that responsibility, but it was a real eye-opener.”

Snezana has also had her own social-media drama. An Instagram pic of her and 10-year-old daughter Eve in a bathroom, wearing shower caps and covered in a coffee body scrub, sparked criticism that she was sexualising her daughter. (Only Eve’s arm and face are visible.) “I love the picture, and Eve was the one who wanted to join in on it,” Snezana explains. “We’re both artistic, and to me, that was just a fun shot.”

The scrutiny can be confronting, she says, especially as appearing on The Bachelor was never her plan – it was Eve’s. “She was really pushing me to go out and meet somebody,” says Snezana. “I never really wanted to be in the media prior to being on the show. A lot of people do go on The Bachelor to get their foot in the door – I had no intention of that, so being thrown into the limelight has been a bit of a learning curve!”

Snezana has also had to contend with rumours of a boob job, which she confirms. “Yes, I have. That was a few years ago; I’ve never hidden it. I’m not ashamed of it.” She adds, “It wasn’t purely for cosmetic reasons,” although she opts against discussing the medical issue behind the operation.

Even though their affection for each other on set would shut down any sceptic, the couple is still mapping out their immediate future. In recent months, Sam’s new fitness app, 28:28, has taken priority over planning their wedding. Reports suggest it will be televised but the couple say they haven’t decided.

“Maybe. It would have to be us having our dream wedding and them fitting in,” clarifies Sam. (A Network Ten rep says “Nearly 1.9 million viewers tuned in to see Sam declare his love for Snezana and we’d welcome the chance to work with them again.”)

While Sam recently purchased a $1.65 million three-bedroom home in Melbourne’s Elsternwick, Snezana is yet to finalise the timing of the move interstate. “All that depends on Eve,” she says. “We want to make it as easy on her as possible.” Asked whether Eve’s father, who has previously voiced his opposition to the move, will relent, all she’ll say is, “That’s something we’re going to discuss between us and work out.”

Snezana is more comfortable praising Sam: “He’s really romantic; he’s always surprising me with something. He’s a real sweetheart.” The best surprise? “The house! We both went to see it and I loved it. And then he bought it and surprised me with it – I had no idea!”

As Alex McKinnon and Teigan Power giggle about how romantic they are, discuss their plans for the future and wonder whether they’ve left it too late to book a restaurant table for Valentine’s Day, they resemble any young, engaged, loved-up couple on the brink of starting their life together.

But the course of that life changed on March 24, 2014, when a dangerous tackle in an NRL Premiership match fractured two of Alex’s vertebrae, leaving him paralysed from the chest down and confined to a wheelchair.

Faced with a future very different from the one they’d envisaged, many couples would have crumbled. But Alex’s proposal to Teigan from his hospital bed just a couple of weeks later displayed how they met that ultimate challenge: with optimism, determination and love.

“Every time we’ve had a sh*t situation, we try to turn it into a good one,” Alex explains. “We’ll continue to do that for the rest of our lives.”

The pair, who met in 2010 at a pub in country NSW, had been living together in Newcastle for five months when Alex was injured. Teigan, who teaches casually at a Newcastle primary school, is now his carer, which she takes in her stride: “You just put everything in perspective. We’re still alive and able to do some of the things we love. Even if we can’t do some of the old things, there are still heaps of new adventures.”

This positive attitude, along with communication and mutual support, is their most powerful tool. “We’re pretty open with each other,” says Teigan. “If you know what the other one’s going through, you can work through it as a team.”

“There are times when I’m down and Teigan picks me up,” says Alex. “I don’t know where I’d be without her.” In turn, Teigan appreciates Alex’s courage: “I love his determination: he’s set himself goals and he always tries to achieve them. He’s as positive as he can be. He’s pretty funny, too – that helps!” But both squirm at the idea others might take inspiration from their story. “We’re pretty unassuming,” says Alex. “We think that if other people were in our situation, they’d deal with it exactly the same.” Adds Teigan, “We’re not the worst-case scenario, so you might as well just get on and live your life.”

And get on with it they do. They’re pencilling in their wedding for the end of 2017, and Alex is determined to walk Teigan down the aisle. “Recovery’s been slow but you can’t complain,” he says. “Every time we go back to rehab, there’s an improvement.”

But before the wedding (and the three children they hope will follow), the couple have plenty of goals to tick off. They’re in the process of building a family home (set to be finished in April), while Alex, who is starting a high-school teaching degree this year, works part-time at the Newcastle Knights in recruitment and does intensive, week-long rehabilitation sessions on the Gold Coast every couple of months. He has some thinking to do, too. “I want to figure out a purpose in life,” he says. “I always had football to focus on before, so now I want something else to drive me.”

“We always see the light at the end of the tunnel,” Alex continues. “We can see the future ahead and it looks pretty good for us.”

David Novak-Piper, 54, stylist and hair & make-up artist, and Neale Whitaker, 53, editor-in-chief of Vogue Living and judge on The Block, with Weimaraners Ollie and Otis

David and Neale with their Weimaraners Ollie and Otis.Source:Sunday Style

“I was doing hair and make-up backstage at a cabaret performance for Fashion Targets Breast Cancer,” says David Novak-Piper of the night in 2003 when he and Neale Whitaker met. “Neale was reading the newspaper and was dressed all in black. I thought he looked very stern and serious, so I said, ‘Would you like me to do your hair? I’ve got a black Afro wig.’”

“That old chestnut,” interjects Neale, as he gestures towards his smooth head.

David continues, “I didn’t get any warmth from him then, but later I felt a tap on my shoulder on the dance floor. And we’ve been together ever since.”

Despite their differences, the gregarious hairdresser from Adelaide and the serious British editor clicked immediately. “That’s probably the secret of the longevity of the relationship,” suggests Neale. “If we were too similar, it would never have lasted this long!” David agrees, “You’re very rational. When I go off on a tangent, you bring me back to reality.” Neale says, “And you tell me to lighten up!”

Asked to name what exactly they appreciate about each other, they reel off a long list of good qualities. “Neale’s very supportive,” says David. “He’s caring and thoughtful. He’s very wise, and has a strong work ethic. He’s a good man.” For Neale, “David wears his heart on his sleeve. He’s an honest, straightforward, generous and kind man. I always say he’d give you the last dollar in his pocket and the shirt off his back. He’s incredibly sincere, he just tells it like it is; that’s rare. And he’s always been hugely supportive of me. I’m not the easiest person to live with and I get very stressed about work, so I’m sure I can be a bit of a number sometimes, but he’s always there.”

Their relationship soon blossomed into lasting love. The couple had a civil partnership ceremony in 2008 under British law at the Consulate-General in Sydney, which counts as UK soil, and added to their family with two magnificent Weimaraners, Otis and Ollie.

The secret to their success? “I don’t think a relationship can ever last unless there’s mutual respect,” says Neale. “And being kind to each other. That’s not always easy; we all have our bad days. But there’s no magic formula and everything you heard your parents say about working at relationships is true. Almost 13 years later, we’re still working at it.”

That constant work is coupled with communication (“We always talk things through. Neale’s a fantastic listener,” says David) and a positive attitude. “We have been around on this planet long enough to know that there is always light at the end of the tunnel,” reveals Neale. “You learn that after winter there is always going to be spring.”

Eventually, the couple hope to marry in Australia. “I would love to think that, one day, we could do that in the country we live in,” says Neale. “It is beyond belief that we still don’t have that right. I’m hoping Mr Turnbull will be the one to finally give that to us.”